SEATTLE -- John Olerud thinks the $15.4 million, two-year contract he agreed to Friday with his hometown Seattle Mariners will be his final baseball deal.

	John Olerud First Base Seattle Mariners Profile
	2002 SEASON STATISTICS GM HR RBI R OBP AVG 154 22 102 85 .403 .300

The 34-year-old first baseman, coming off a $20 million, three-year contract, will be paid $7.7 million in each year of the deal. With his children ready to start school and his extended family living in the Seattle area, the Mariners were the only team Olerud considered.

"I pretty much went in with the mindset that I wanted to come back with the Mariners,'' he said Friday. "We didn't talk to any other clubs.''

Olerud hit .300 with 22 homers and 102 RBIs last season, the second time in his 14-year career he had a .300 average and at least 20 homers and 100 RBIs. He also had a .996 fielding percentage and won his second Gold Glove.

He hopes to finish his career with a flourish at the plate, setting a goal of hitting .320 to .330 over the next two seasons. His full-season career best was a .363 average with Toronto in 1993.

"I just haven't had that consistency lately where I've been at .330 or .320, and that's what I'm always shooting to get back,'' Olerud said. "That's what I'm hoping to do, get in shape for the year and find that stroke.''

Olerud, who has a .300 career average and is 66 hits from 2,000, will re-evaluate his contract situation two years from now. But with his children growing up, he doesn't expect to play beyond that.

"That's what my plan is now,'' he said. "Once they start school, it's harder to move them around. I just think it's a good time to quit.''

After the season, general manager Pat Gillick said it was a priority to bring back Olerud, left-hander Jamie Moyer, catcher Dan Wilson and designated hitter Edgar Martinez.

All of those free agents have re-signed except Moyer.

"We're three-quarters of the way there,'' Gillick said. "To get John back, he's a big part of this team on the field and in the clubhouse. He's a good all-around person and we're glad to have him back.''

The Mariners have all their position players back, and Seattle improved with the addition of All-Star outfielder Randy Winn. He arrived from Tampa Bay as compensation for Lou Piniella being released from his managerial contact.

Olerud was encouraged, saying the Mariners remain in position to challenge for a World Series title. The core remains the same as in 2001, when Seattle tied a major-league record with 116 victories.

"If we get Jamie back, I think we'll be real strong at every position on the field, with a good pitching staff, a good bullpen and a good strong club,'' Olerud said.

Contract talks "didn't go real smoothly, but that's negotiations,'' Olerud said. The turning point came last week when Olerud met with new manager Bob Melvin, who didn't object to wives and children going on occasional road trips.

"He seemed pretty open to that type of stuff,'' Olerud said. "He seemed easy to get along with. He seemed like a good guy.''

Gillick will now try to re-sign the 40-year-old Moyer, who went 13-8 with a 3.32 ERA last season. With Saturday night's deadline to offer salary arbitration approaching, Gillick insisted he doesn't know what will happen.

"We're always optimistic we can work something out,'' Gillick said. "We're still plugging away.''